


in dead leaves and fleeting skies

by Mia_Zeklos



Series: Reylo Week 2020 [7]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Childhood Sweethearts, Eloping, F/M, Family Drama, Force Bond (Star Wars), Jedi Temple (Star Wars), Mild Hurt/Comfort, Padawan Ben Solo, Padawan Rey, Secret Relationship, or aged down ig the entire point is to get them in Luke's temple at the same time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:58:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23991868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mia_Zeklos/pseuds/Mia_Zeklos
Summary: '“Hello,” he drones on to the last arrival – a girl with nothing but a small staff clenched in an uncertain hand, hazel eyes darting around the temple like an easily startled animal. She’s shivering and it’s no surprise – her clothes are meant for a much warmer climate; a desert planet, perhaps. “I’m Ben; welcome to the temple. I can show you to your hut if you want. Master Skywalker is still a bit busy unpacking.”“Hello,” she says, frowning at his offered hand. When he doesn’t draw it back – his mother had taught him that it’s an awfully rude thing to do, unless you already know the customs of your interlocutor – she takes it hesitantly and watches, fascinated, as Ben shakes it with more enthusiasm than he feels. “I’m Rey.'''When he starts planning the future of the Jedi Order, Luke brings along his nephew and an orphan he rescues off of the planet where she'd been abandoned and in the process shapes an entirely new future for the rest of the galaxy.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: Reylo Week 2020 [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1721188
Comments: 4
Kudos: 52
Collections: REYLO WEEK 2020





	in dead leaves and fleeting skies

**Author's Note:**

> Written for day seven of the Reylo Week - Elements/Seasons/Free day. Once again tried to hit all three; this time succesfully, I think. Title taken from [here.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUoni_Ia1tQ)
> 
> Hope this is enjoyable and, as always, feedback is most welcome!

The day the rest of the students arrive, it starts snowing.

Ben doesn’t know what to make of them, initially – for the first week or so, the old, recently made liveable again temple had belonged to him and Master Skywalker alone and he had been allowed to roam the fields and the forests unsupervised, fully aware that his days of freedom would soon be over. He had been so curious about his surroundings that he’d nearly forgotten the betrayal that had reigned over him the day his parents had sent him away and he hadn’t once thought about the fact that his studies would be starting soon, preferring instead to make the most out of the time he’d had left.

That’s all over, now that they’re here. Master Skywalker is being, well, Master Skywalker and assigning them their own huts, telling them to make themselves at home. They’re all around Ben’s age and, for the most part, seem both confused and delighted to be here, disoriented by the long trip, and he does his best to usher them in as they struggle with their very limited luggage.

He knows what it’s like; being ripped away from the rest of the world in the blink of an eye, leaving all physical belongings behind in an effort to show that you’re above everything else. He doesn’t really feel above much of anything, but it’s what Master Skywalker insists is the truth, and Master Skywalker’s word is law. His mother had made sure to let him know of that right before he’d stepped out of the _Millennium Falcon_ for the last time. It had been then that Uncle Luke had turned into Master Skywalker to begin with, and it had all been getting stranger from there, but Ben isn’t ready to call it quits just yet.

“Hello,” he drones on to the last arrival – a girl with nothing but a small staff clenched in an uncertain hand, hazel eyes darting around the temple like an easily startled animal. She’s shivering and it’s no surprise – her clothes are meant for a much warmer climate; a desert planet, perhaps. “I’m Ben; welcome to the temple. I can show you to your hut if you want. Master Skywalker is still a bit busy unpacking.”

“Hello,” she says, frowning at his offered hand. When he doesn’t draw it back – his mother had taught him that it’s an awfully rude thing to do, unless you already know the customs of your interlocutor – she takes it hesitantly and watches, fascinated, as Ben shakes it with more enthusiasm than he feels. “I’m Rey. Master Skywalker found me on my homeworld and thought I might be safer here until my parents return.”

“Did he?” Now _that’s_ a surprise. The majority of his uncle’s students come from well-known and just as well-respected families from all corners in the galaxy, every bit of Force sensitivity in people’s children put on show so that they could one day form the new Jedi Order. Abandoned children had not been part of the plan, but Ben is rather glad – none of the other kids can tell him anything about the world that he doesn’t already know. “Which world is that?”

“Jakku.”

“Oh.” Not much experience to be gathered from that, then, but perhaps he can still turn this around and teach _her_ something instead. “Do you like it here?”

“It’s cold,” Rey says in lieu of an answer and Ben nods empathetically as another gust of wind blows over them. “It was never that cold back home. Is it always like this?”

“I think not. I’ve been only here for a month, too, but Master Skywalker says it’ll get warmer eventually.” He swings their hands together as he walks her back down the steps. It’s strange – he’d never particularly liked being touched by anyone but his parents, but he doesn’t mind now. The contact gives him a sense of lightness and calm that doesn’t always come naturally, given the reasons he’d been sent here to begin with. _That’s_ _it_ , a voice whispers, low and barely audible, and it stumbles just a little in the backdrop of Rey’s relieved smile. _They never had the time for you, did they? You’re too difficult, too stubborn, too powerful, the knowledge you could gain—_

“The snow _is_ terrible,” he admits, a little too loud, and Rey nods enthusiastically. He can’t even imagine what it must be like for someone who’s never seen it. “It gets through your clothes and can give you frostbite if you’re not careful. But I know a use for it.”

 _How’s that for knowledge?_ His new friend’s fingers fidget with his own and she bites her lip, intrigued.

“Go on.”

“We could make a snowman.”

Showing her how it’s done takes hours and by the end of the day, their shoes are soaked through and Ben’s hands are burning from the cold, but it had been worth it, he decides as Master Skywalker drags them out of the forest, hands wrapped around their respective wrists as he tugs them along and berates them for their disappearance. She’d been worth all the little inconveniences his plan had caused – when compared to her, they had all seemed inconsequential.

~.~

“You’re telling me that you don’t want to know.”

“No, Ben.” She really rather does not. The temple is her home, had been for years, and it doesn’t make much sense that they can’t seem to agree on this. He hadn’t left it for a moment in the past three years either and she can’t comprehend the issue now – the place is beautiful this time of the year, with life springing out of everywhere and everything until her eyes water from the brightness of it all. “And I don’t know what your problem is. When there are missions worth exploring, you’re the one Master Skywalker brings; if there was anything interesting, he’d take you along.”

“Yes, because I’m the strongest,” he waves her off with such easy confidence that she almost envies him. They’re very nearly equal by now, the only thing still propelling him forward faster being the fact that his Force-related impulses had been doted upon since infancy. Rey’s own powers had only awakened when she’d come here for her studies and had opted to dedicate her life to the Order. “But he hasn’t said anything now. He doesn’t trust me.”

“Of course he trusts you; you’re family.” All she receives in response is a derisive huff. It mystifies her every time he says anything remotely resentful about them, but she’d learnt to understand over time – he’d felt abandoned since the start. “But you don’t need to be the one to inspect every artefact he brings in. Just because you’re going stir crazy—”

“That’s not what this is.” He plucks a few of the flowers in his immediate surroundings and starts piling them on a neat heap in front of them, clearly in need of something to do with his hands, and Rey does her best to suppress an eye-roll. He’s her best friend in the whole world – any world, really – but she’s the first to admit that he can become unbearable faster than he can blink once he puts his mind to it. It’s the only kind of thing he ever puts his mind to, unfortunately. “Aren’t you even a _little_ curious—”

“ _No_ , Ben.” She nudges the Force just enough to draw the flowers away from him and scatter them back to their respective places, closing her eyes until she can feel them all settling back into their stems. “What did Master Skywalker say about needless destruction?”

She hadn’t really expected an answer and she doesn’t receive one – instead, Ben zeroes in on one of the healed flowers, eyes widening almost comically at the sight of it, good as new.

“How do you _do_ that?” He shifts until he’s laying down on his belly, hair fanning over his shoulders and hiding his face from view, but Rey can hear the awe in his voice just fine. “Restoring life isn’t a power a Jedi can usually use.”

He’s right, but, “There are caveats. You would _know_ if you’d paid attention.”

He’s trying, Rey knows, but never enough – for him, there’s nothing quite like the brute strength of the Force when it allows him to throw his opponents around like ragdolls during training. He’s chaotic and sullen and somewhat explosive and, she realises as she sends one of the flowers sneaking upwards and tickling his nose right before he pulls away to start sneezing and swearing, she had never loved him quite so much.

~.~

Rey is sitting by the river bank when Ben finally finds her – curled in on herself, arms wrapped around her bent knees, shoulders trembling as if she’s crying – and he deactivates his lightsaber as soon as he takes in the sight of her. She’s safe (they’re all safe here, of course, but it’s not a response his mind will allow him to send people); there’s no need for a weapon, even if there might be a need for him. They’d grown enough by now to allow themselves the comfort to be whatever the other needed in any given moment.

“Rey?”He can see her frantically wiping at her eyes and shakes his head, stepping closer. “You can’t hide from me.”

“I know.” Her voice sounds impossibly rough and he wonders, fleetingly, how long she’d spent here before he’d sensed her. He doesn’t let it show in his expression for long – he hates it when she shuts him and she hates it when he sees her vulnerable, and vice versa. It had happened enough times by now for them to see the pattern. “I know. It’s just—”

He settles down next to her, feet dangling several feet above the water. The river is loud enough to drown their conversation out, but he lowers his voice anyway as he chances, “Is this because of Myaeva?”

“Yes. No,” Rey denied a moment later, as if terrified of the implications. “I’m happy for her, really. She’s learnt so much, but if she wants to go back to the rest of the world, it’s good to that she had a safety net. It’s good that her family was there for her even if they sent her here in the first place.” She falters, unsure if she wants to continue, but it’s a pointless battle – he knows already, thanks to the strange connection they’d developed ever since the start. Nearly eight years it had stood tall in the face of any and all obstacles that Luke had tested them with to try – and fail – to explain it, so often by now that it’s a second nature for them to dip into it under duress. If she’d been lying, he would have _known_. “I’m not angry at her. She doesn’t deserve that for having a family. But it was just—so easy. They were the ones who tried to make her a Jedi, but they came the moment she called. It made me think.” She kicks at the sand at her feet and the stifling heat around them gets that much more unbearable when paired with the whirlwind inside her. Had it been a day like any other, they would have already been in the river, trying to wash away the tensions of the day; as it is, Ben holds onto her with one arm wrapped around her back, letting Rey lean almost entirely onto him. “If my family is alive – if they’d cared – they would have found me already. I don’t think I would have gone with them after all those years, but it wouldn’t hurt to be _asked_. If they’d loved me, they would have tried.”

“I know.” He _does_ , even if he’s got the privilege of remembering his own parents, at least. It’s been nearly a decade and they must have changed by now, but he’s got an inkling of what family is, and there’s only one solution that makes sense. Rey had helped him belong, had helped him _see_ ; it’s only fair that he does the same. “You’ve got your family here, in the temple already. In everyone else,” he hurries to add, lest she thinks he’s singling himself out, immediately before he likely proves her right, “and in me, if you’ll have me. I can’t promise it’ll be perfect, but I’ll always try.” _Because I’ve always loved you._ He’s not embarrassed to say it – it’s a fact of life and one Rey is perfectly aware of – but he doesn’t _need_ to. She can sense it, and it shows in the slight parting of her lips; in the reciprocated wave of unadulterated joy she sends his way.

“A Jedi must love everyone,” she childes, but it sounds more like an echo of their collective teachings rather than actual reprimanding. “No one should be more important than anyone else.”

“Is that how you feel?” It’s barely a challenge, but she shakes her head decisively anyway and Ben can’t help the smile he offers in return. “I’ll let you in on a secret.” He braces his free hand on her shoulder and turns her towards him completely, lips ghosting over her ear as he leans in. “I don’t think I’m cut out for a Jedi anyway.”

Rey wrenches him away by the hair, wide-eyed and incredulous, and the kiss that follows is so devastatingly heartfelt that it sends them both hurtling straight into the stream below. Ben doesn’t really have it in himself to complain – if this is what he receives every time he admits to feelings she already knows of, he could profess his adoration until the end of time.

~.~

The temple and the world surrounding it are alight with the shades of autumn as Rey stands in front of the _Grimtaash_ , waiting for Ben’s arrival as he picks up the last of their belongings. It’s not going to take long given how little they’ve got to their names, and she takes one final moment to take in the view.

She’d said her goodbyes hours ago, as had Ben. They’d walked through their home of nearly fifteen years countless times just this morning, not quite ready to cut their ties with it entirely, but had finally gathered the strength to do just that by the time it had become clear that there would be no turning back.

It’s easy to blame herself; to think that it had all started when Master Skywalker had caught them in a rather compromising position shortly after dinner in her hut, but that had simply been the catalyst, in the end. It had taken another four years after the tongue lashing they’d taken then for the last drop needed to finally overflow the cup of his patience, and Ben had refused to tell her what had actually _happened_ between him and his uncle the night before, other than the thought of her had been the one thing to keep him from falling apart. He’d grow more comfortable with it in time, she hopes, once the distance had made the years-long tension ease bit by bit, but for now, it’s quite a clear picture – he can’t stay here a moment longer. Staying where he isn’t is unthinkable at this point – always had been, it seems in retrospect – and so she’d joined him without a second thought. It only cements itself as the right choice in her mind when she sees him approach with a handbag thrown over his shoulder as he bounds up the steps into the starship and motions her in.

It’s a vast machine; too big for the two of them, let alone one man, and Rey tries to take in as much of it as she can on a first look as Ben settles comfortably in one of the pilot’s seats. His eyes are still locked on the world outside, even more stunning from above – under the light of the sunset, the yellow and red of the forest seems to have finally caught fire – and he fires the engines a moment later, lifting them up decisively.

“There’s still time to change your mind.” It’s a joke, but there’s an age-old habit of second-guessing lurking underneath; one she knows all too well. “If you’d like to go back home, that is.”

Rey opens her mind entirely to him and lets them both melt into the connection between them for an instant, hope and anticipation and fear coming alive all at once as she grips his hand as tight as she can. “This is home.”

In a way, it always had been.


End file.
